I am glad the a bit loose knob is simply supposed to be like that and my unit is not damaged. It being this ways actually gives more control and accuracy re sound volume.

Now, can somebody kindly tell me how album art files should named so the player can actually read them? I've got almost 800GB of flac. I am not going to embed artwork into all the files just for this player.

I am glad the a bit loose knob is simply supposed to be like that and my unit is not damaged. It being this ways actually gives more control and accuracy re sound volume.

Now, can somebody kindly tell me how album art files should named so the player can actually read them? I've got almost 800GB of flac. I am not going to embed artwork into all the files just for this player.

You will need to embed the artwork for it to work. It's very quick and easy to do with MP3tag though. You can add a folder containing an album, select all tracks and then add the artwork.

You will need to embed the artwork for it to work. It's very quick and easy to do with MP3tag though. You can add a folder containing an album, select all tracks and then add the artwork.

Simples :)

Oh, don't worry, I know how to do it, just I don't want to. This is the first thing I don't like about this device. It should be able to read png and jpeg images from separate files and I don't understand why it can't do that already by default. If one keeps bigger collections of lossless audio, both self ripped and acquired, artwork files are usually kept separately, especially if they are scanned and/or saved as lossless png for user's flexibility and discretion, apart from overall inflexibility of having lossless audio stuffed with trash extra data like low quality cover art.

With a usb cable supplied for charging, then I now just prefer to keep with the usb standard, unless a charger is supplied, I will just used standardized ports such as those off the PC or X Box and PS3 and shy away from these 2amp multi usb charging ports.

My Kindle Fire HD came with only a USB cable - and it takes days if I try to charge off a port on my iMac - but if I use the 12W charger that came with my 1Pad 4 - it charges much faster - so in this case, the Kindle regulates how much charge it will accept - I am unsure how many watts the accessory Kindle charger puts out, but the Apple charger has fit the bill.

A question regarding the AK100 and a $700 set of IEM's... Would it be better to buy the AK100 and with the remaining funds buy the best set of IEM's I could get for around $700 - Or get an iPod Classic 160GB and get the best set of $1100 IEM's I could get....

I just managed to swing an extra $1500 and would like to take a step up in quality. This is to be portable and I don't think I want to add an amplifier to the mix as that would add extra bulk I don't want to mess with...

A question regarding the AK100 and a $700 set of IEM's... Would it be better to buy the AK100 and with the remaining funds buy the best set of IEM's I could get for around $700 - Or get an iPod Classic 160GB and get the best set of $1100 IEM's I could get....

I just managed to swing an extra $1500 and would like to take a step up in quality. This is to be portable and I don't think I want to add an amplifier to the mix as that would add extra bulk I don't want to mess with...

What would you do with $1500?

i would invest in top of the line iem's - i would buy a cowon or the soon to be launched fiio x3 for now - you can always upgrade to a top of the line DAP later and then you would be set for a few years

i would invest in top of the line iem's - i would buy a cowon or the soon to be launched fiio x3 for now - you can always upgrade to a top of the line DAP later and then you would be set for a few years

Thanks - I have spent most of my time in the portable headphone forum as I thought I was pretty set for source equipment. I saw the AK100 and thought that there was an aspirational piece of equipment. Some day I'll have the bucks. Then a small windfall popped up where I could spend 1.5K without regrets and I started thinking about some of the CIEMs and other high end universals I could possibly get. Then I remembered the AK100 and the whole idea of source came up again. Where to put the lion's share of the bucks to get the most bang. The idea of the FIIO x3 looks promising - a reasonable priced player that would play a multitude of formats. I agree - the headphones should command the bulk of the purchase. If the FIIO cost about $200+ - hell, almost anything in the IEM arena is a possibility.

pretty difficult to say, best IEMs need good source to reveal their sonics... so attaching 1k IEM to so-so DAP might be not the best idea. I know one chap who bought very good loudspeakers and used mid range Denon receiver with them... he thought he had great sound until he heard my front end system. why i am saying this? if you will use so-so DAP with 1k IEM you might feel cheated because they will not sound as they should. mind this i know some people achieve great results with Colorfly C3 or rockboxed Sansa Clip, check various threads. i would not suggest Cowons with really high end IEM, because Cowon will not pull the trigger, Cowons are rather digital processor oriented and once you begin using BBE and else you will get all kind of digitalization which will kill the purpose of having best of best IEMs imho...

Mind this ask others for advice. Also if buying AK100 you will have to match your IEM choice because of impedance issue while RWA moded AK will set you back another 250$. anyway, this is your decision but my advice would be to read as much as you can and do you homework before pulling the trigger... You know many users who come back complaining about gear often did not do enough home work and end up buying not the right for them devices.

So this will be my advice, sorry if i sound a bit pathetic :-DEdited by Gintaras - 4/19/13 at 1:47pm

Yes. The volume control knob is attached to a small shaft. It has a small set screw and is actually very well made. A good idea on how they made it as you can't stress the actual electronics. I wondered to until I took mine apart.

pretty difficult to say, best IEMs need good source to reveal their sonics... so attaching 1k IEM to so-so DAP might be not the best idea. I know one chap who bought very good loudspeakers and used mid range Denon receiver with them... he thought he had great sound until he heard my front end system. why i am saying this? if you will use so-so DAP with 1k IEM you might feel cheated because they will not sound as they should. mind this i know some people achieve great results with Colorfly C3 or rockboxed Sansa Clip, check various threads. i would not suggest Cowons with really high end IEM, because Cowon will not pull the trigger, Cowons are rather digital processor oriented and once you begin using BBE and else you will get all kind of digitalization which will kill the purpose of having best of best IEMs imho...

What he said, especially as better IEMs become much more revealing of how lacking source's SQ is which they are plugged into. Get RWAK100 for $950 and keep on saving for a pair of proper cims like JH 13/16 Pro. UE700 from your desc. aren't so bad and you can use them for a while with a top end player. That is at least what I would do. And yes, cowons tend to produce 'artificial' sound. Units like Z2 are good as all around players (-> a little bit of tivo eps watched on the subway mixed with some mp3 music sometimes), but you don't want to connect one to a higher-end head/earphones. And apple? Anything apple is crap.

Apple not necessarily crap, rockboxed Classic gets good responses, but for higher quality sound entry level DAP i would suggest C3 which costs only 100$ and you can always add a good amp like T1 or C5 which in total will be still less than new iPod ... Sansa can be alternative but i am not knowledgeable of it while i saw some Sansa users upgrading to C3 and beeing very happy about their decision.

For instance C3 plus T1 amp will set you back 329$ which will be twice less than AK100 and you can use T1 with AK happily as well.... Plus T1 comes with quality cable so no need to pay extra for cable. Cheaper but still great alternative can be C3 with BH amp which will cost you 200 bucks but then you will need to add good cable because stock cable is crap so add 20$ for that. Even then 220$ is hard to beat and for this little money you get great soinding setup. I personally would prefer T1 or C5 amps because once you upgrade to a better DAP the BH amp might become not enough while T1 pairs nicely with many DAPs including AK100 and RWAK100 :-DEdited by Gintaras - 4/19/13 at 2:53pm

I wish I have a chance to audition the AK100, but recently I just got my ipod 5g modded with film caps (direct out to LOD pins) and it just blows my mind. I can hear every single detail from my music, and treble is silky and milky, best 3D imaging. Wow I feel like I am in heaven!

A question regarding the AK100 and a $700 set of IEM's... Would it be better to buy the AK100 and with the remaining funds buy the best set of IEM's I could get for around $700 - Or get an iPod Classic 160GB and get the best set of $1100 IEM's I could get....

I just managed to swing an extra $1500 and would like to take a step up in quality. This is to be portable and I don't think I want to add an amplifier to the mix as that would add extra bulk I don't want to mess with...

What would you do with $1500?

Ivabign

i still stand by my opinion at this point to invest in the iem's first. Once you have these you dont have to worry about them again for a while. The DAP market is evolving quite rapidly. There has been a lack of quality devices and they have been expensive. The Fiio X3 will probably change all that and if that device is successful (which i think it will due to components used) then it will cause quite a stir in the DAP market and suddenly devices like the AK100, ibasso etc will suffer in resale value. It is only because of this that I suggest the IEMs for now as investing money in a DAP is a little risky with the X3 looming on the horizon.

It is because of this that I am in the same boat as you and am using my trusty Cowon with my Sennheiser IE800's. Sound is just great thanks and yes it will improve a lot when i upgrade the DAP but Im waiting to see how the X3 is reviewed. If the SQ is good then I will be glad i waited - if not then the currently available audiophile DAPS will still be there if you want one.

I'm using GR07s ($250) with T1 amp ($250) and AK100 ($640) while I wait for my Miracles to come back and the sound is exceptional for just over $1100. As good as with Miracles? No, but this combo already beats iPod 5G with T1 and Miracles so if I had to choose I'd go with AK100, amp, and good lower priced IEMs.

Depending on taste there are a few options like GR07, etc. Also AK100 and Heir Tzar 350 is another possibility without needing amp.